Music Production for Films
A course by Simon Smith, Musician and Composer
Explore music as a tool for storytelling by conceptualizing, developing, and producing a score for the big screen
Composing for films is a process that reveals the power of music. It evokes feelings that words and images alone cannot, and helps to bring a story to life. Musician and composer Simon Smith specializes in composing for film and television. His music can be heard in cinemas as well as on platforms like Netflix and Amazon.
In this course, Simon takes you through the process of conceptualizing, developing, and producing your own score for a film. Extend your music-making beyond just instruments and learn to tell compelling stories through sound.
What will you learn in this online course?
21 lessons & 28 downloads
What's included in this course?
Begin by getting to know musician and composer Simon Smith. He talks you through his journey to becoming a composer for film and television, before taking a look at the artists and influences which have inspired his work over the years.
Explore what film scoring actually is, then dive into the equipment you’ll need to create one, from headphones to virtual instruments. Go behind the scenes of the film production process and the people involved before switching your focus to the music itself. Learn to analyze how and why film music works and discover different options for applying musical ideas to a story. Look in-depth at how storytelling and music are used in films before diving into example scores and hearing Simon’s tips on composition and production.
Discover one of the key moments in the film scoring process: the spotting session. Then, begin your technical setup. Dive into the film and find a concept to give perspective to your musical ideas. Learn to analyze a script, location, acting, lighting, and more before deciding on your ideas and making a plan for your music.
Now you’re ready to start writing! Simon talks you through creating a theme suite or palette of colors and sounds before applying your ideas to a film, scene by scene. Once your ideas are ready to share with a director, prepare them for presentation and feedback.
With the composition stage over, it’s time to perfect your sound ready for exporting and delivery. Simon shares his expertise on legal matters including release forms and music royalties. To finish the course, he offers his advice for career development in the music industry.
- 100% positive reviews (255)
- 10,072 students
- 21 lessons (4h 21m)
- 28 additional resources (7 files)
- Online and at your own pace
- Available on the app
- Audio: English, Spanish (Latam), French, Italian, Portuguese, Turkish
- English · Spanish · Portuguese · German · French · Italian · Polish · Dutch · Turkish
- Level: Beginner
- Unlimited access forever
Recommended software & tools for this course
Logic Pro XWhat is this course's project?
Compose a powerful score for a short film of your choice.
Projects by course students
Who is this online course for?
Anyone with an interest in learning to score music for film or applying music to any audiovisual work.
Requirements and materials
Some basic understanding of music theory is required. You will also need the ability to record, edit, and mix music in a digital audio workstation.
In terms of equipment, you will need headphones, virtual instruments, and other materials the teacher will talk through in more detail in the course.
Reviews
Simon Smith
A course by Simon Smith
Simon Smith is a Barcelona-based musician and composer who specializes in music for film and television. As a child, he was always experimenting with playing different instruments and eventually went on to study music in London, where he found himself drawn towards composing and improvising. Simon went on to release music with a label in the city and play in bands at well-known festivals like Glastonbury before moving on to composing for the big screen.
He has worked in countries around the world including the USA, Germany, Mexico, the UK, and Spain, and his work can be heard both in cinemas as well as on platforms like Netflix and Amazon.
Content
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U1
Introduction
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About Me
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Influences
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U2
First Concepts
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What Is Scoring for Film?
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What You Need before Starting
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Film Production Process and Team Workflow
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Let’s Talk about Music Itself 1
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Let’s Talk about Music Itself 2
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Music in Storytelling 1
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Music in Storytelling 2
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Some Composing and Production Tips 1
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Some Composing and Production Tips 2
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U3
Starting the Project
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The Spotting Session
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Getting Set Up Technically
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Inside the Film: Finding a Concept and Planning 1
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Inside the Film: Finding a Concept and Planning 2
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U4
Scoring
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The Theme Suite 1
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The Theme Suite 2
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Scene by Scene
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Presentation and Feedback
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U5
It All Comes Together
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Mixdown and Delivery
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Cue Sheets, Legal and Other Important Things
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FP
Final project
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Music Production for Films
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What to expect from a Domestika course
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Learn at your own pace
Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.
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Learn from the best professionals
Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.
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Meet expert teachers
Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.
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Certificates
PlusIf you're a Plus member, get a custom certificate signed by your teacher for every course. Share it on your portfolio, social media, or wherever you like.
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Get front-row seats
Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.
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Share knowledge and ideas
Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.
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Connect with a global creative community
The community is home to millions of people from around the world who are curious and passionate about exploring and expressing their creativity.
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Watch professionally produced courses
Domestika curates its teacher roster and produces every course in-house to ensure a high-quality online learning experience.
FAQs
Yes, this course is designed for intermediate-level composers and musicians who want to develop their skills in film scoring, sound design, and music production for audiovisual projects.
You will need a computer, a digital audio workstation (DAW) like Logic or Ableton, a MIDI keyboard, headphones or speakers, and access to audio libraries or sample packs for hands-on practice.
You’ll learn composing for film, sound design, mixing audio, recording live instruments, working with samples, collaborating with filmmakers, and using DAWs to create and deliver professional film music.
Basic familiarity with DAWs and music production is recommended, as the course builds on foundational skills and covers workflow optimization, advanced scoring, and sound design techniques.
The course covers strategies for effective collaboration, communication, and creative alignment with film directors, animators, and sound departments throughout the scoring and mixing process.
Yes, the course teaches techniques for composing original scores and adapting pre-existing music, including temp track editing, licensing, and integrating both approaches for cinematic storytelling.
Yes, you will work on practical projects such as scoring to picture, importing video into your DAW, syncing music with timecode, and preparing stems for real-world film and animation scenarios.
Logic Pro X
Este curso es un regalo que no sabia que queria ha sido el mejor regalo que me eh dado
Amazing content, learned alot from this course
Muy Buen Curso, muy claro el contenido, Super Recomendable.
No lo he terminado pero la verdad se me hace muy completo como punto de partida para enfocarte a composición de medios
Hi! I am on a much simple stage of creating stories with my son with autism. I need to enrich his stories, adding music, composing short pieces with live percussion instruments, including his piano playing, and, of course, his voice. So thanks to Simon Smith for his professional, generous sharing of his expertise on the subject. I am sure our future creation of stories will be enhanced by this course. Thanks once again to Domestika.All the best